Ric Flair: To Be the Man

THIS IS ABOUT THE LIFE AND CAREER OF PRO WRESTLING GREAT RIC FLAIR. FROM THE FIRST TIME I SAW RIC PERFORM ON TV, I KNEW HE WAS ONE OF THE BEST. I ALWAYS ENJOYED HIS COLORFUL AND FUNNY INTERVIEWS, BUT HE ALSO PUT ON A GREAT SHOW IN THE RING. HIS BOOK IS VERY INTERESTING, FUNNY, SCARY AND VERY ENJOYABLE. HIS RELATIONSHIPS WITH STING, RODDY PIPER, VINCE MCMAHON AND HULK HOGAN ARE SOME OF THE HIGHLIGHTS OF THIS WELL WRITTEN BOOK. I CONSIDER RIC FLAIR AS ONE OF THE TOP 5 PERFORMERS OF ALL TIME IN THE WORLD OF PRO WRESTLING. ALSO ENJOYED SOME OF THE RIDICULOUS BUT FUNNY STORYLINES HE WAS INVOLVED IN OVER THE YEARS. I HOPE RIC DOES SOMETHING ABOUT HIS VERY OBVIOUS PROBLEM WITH ALCOHOL. HE STILL IS THE MAN AND WILL BE FOREVER. A MUST READ FOR ALL WRESTLING FANS.

I thought Mick Foley was the only wrestler to capsulize a wrestling career in a thoughtful, engrossing and humorous way, but Mr. Flair proved me wrong with this book. From this point onward, very professional wrestler who decides to write his or her own bio should use this book as a guideline. Flair talks about growing up, breaking into the wrestling business, making it big and other highlights with honesty, humor and, in some cases, like how he truly feels about Mick Foley and former WCW head honcho Eric Bischoff, a great deal of controversy. It is, in a word, PERFECT. I have nothing negative to say about this book. If you're a wrestling fan and haven't read it already, click that little Order button on your screen and get it NOW. I don't care if you've been watching wrestling for years or are only a casual fan of six months. You WILL enjoy this book.

I've read pretty much all of the wrestling autobiographies that have come out over the past few years, and Ric Flair's book is among my top three favorites. The thing that irritates me most about wrestler autobiographies is the political [...]-kissing that waters down each one. That doesn't happen in this book. While some might accuse Flair of kissing up to Vince McMahon in these pages, I believe his feelings were heartfelt and 100% true. I give the McMahon family a lot of credit for restoring the confidence that was beat out of Flair in the ridiculous atmosphere of WCW. The only things that irritated me about "To Be The Man" were his exaggerated praising of Triple H, and his take on Bret Hart after his brother Owen's passing. These two takes (especially the cold "receipt" on Bret) were not needed. Something tells me Vince wasn't in much of a hurry to strike down his editing finger and steer clear of putting Bret in a negative light (the '97 Montreal fiasco probably still eats at him). I cannot give "To Be The Man" a higher recommendation. Flair is impressively honest about the mistakes he's made in his life. His anecdotes are classic. I simply could not put this book down. Great job.

I've been a fan of professional wrestling since I was a kid, and some of my fondest wrestling memories involve the Nature Boy. This book details the life of, in my opinion, the greatest professional wrestling performer of all time (yes, greater than even Hulk Hogan). I just could not put it down! I was mesmerized at Flair's account of all of the old-timers who had helped to mold and shape his career, such as Wahood McDanial, Verne Gagne, Johnnie Valentine, Harley Race, and Blackjack Mulligan. Like other wresters during that time, Flair lived a wild life in his younger days, as he relives in sometimes painful detail. I really respect him for owning up to all of his mistakes and bad choices and how he has learned from all of them, as this only proves that he is a human being. It was pretty sad to read about how former WCW officials like Jim Herd and Eris Bischoff went out of their way seemingly to make Flair's life as miserable as they could .Given that during Flair's legal troubles with WCW in 1998, Bischoff's pledge in front of other wrestlers that he was going to "sue Flair and his family into bankruptcy," as well as numerous other personal and professional slights, I can see why Flair hates the man's guts. It was gratifying to read how Flair got a little "payback" shortly after Bischoff arrived in the WWE in 2002. For professional wrestling fans, this book is a must-read.

The best wrestling book put out, period. No surprise given that Ric Flair's name was attached to it, it had to be the best. My only gripe was that it was too short--I wanted more.Lots of good inside stuff from the 70's and 80's, and the tragic sufferings of a man who was literally beaten down by one of the biggest clowns in wrestling, Eric Bischoff. Flair doesn't really pull any punches here, and it is intriguing to watch his relationships with Dusty and Hogan develop from one of idolization to a certain animosity (Dusty Rhodes), to a mutual respect to a portrayed hatred (Hulk Hogan).Flair clearly has his favorites: Harley Race, Wahoo, Steamboat, Windham, Sting and Arn--no surprise. He also identifies some folks who should not never have even bothered wrestling, Ultimate Warrior, Brutus Beefcake, to a lesser extent, Mick Foley. Gotta love the take on Shane Douglas as well. How's your book Shane? heh heh.What's great is Flair's respect for the guys who came before him, and the hard work that had to be put in for Flair to be the best. How many people today could live through Verne Gagne's training camps? If Flair hadn't partied so hard, we might be already looking at the next sports politician. Great story, but I just wish it was longer- Flair's stories are so good that you really wish the book would keep going. Fantastic read, you have to pick this up.